Aven sat cross-legged on the grass, with nine evolution stones laid out before him.
Seven Water Stones, one Dawn Stone, and one Leaf Stone—seven of which were part of the ransom sent by the nobles, and the remaining two belonged to Lady Mira.
As for the other nine regular gems, Aven had also collected them.
Although these weren't evolution stones, their quality was high, and they contained faint energy fluctuations, making them very valuable.
Among them, the Leaf Stone was prepared for Gloom. However, Aven was uncertain how to use the seven Water Stones.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
In an open clearing, Rhydon was relentlessly using the move Ancient Power.
To help Rhydon train that move, Aven had cleared out a special area for it.
Under the repeated bombardment of Ancient Power, the entire field had become completely devastated, now resembling a rocky terrain.
Aven welcomed this development. He believed it wouldn't be long before the area would transform into a decent rocky training ground.
At that point, Tangela could also train Ancient Power there and gain better results.
Furthermore, Aven could use the place as a breeding ground for Rock-type Pokémon in his nursery.
Currently, Tangela was curled up in a corner of the rocky field, nervously practicing Ancient Power, afraid that Rhydon might accidentally strike it.
Petilil, Froslass, and Shinx were also training, although they seemed distracted, frequently glancing toward Aven—or rather, toward the evolution stones in front of him.
For them, using evolution stones to evolve wasn't unfamiliar. Froslass had evolved with the help of an Awakening Stone.
These stones contained a mysterious energy capable of triggering evolution in certain Pokémon.
Gloom, the leader of its kind, was feeling conflicted.
When Aven obtained the Leaf Stone, he informed Gloom right away.
With the Leaf Stone, it could evolve—a fact that excited it greatly.
But once it calmed down, hesitation began to creep in.
Could it really accept the Leaf Stone so freely?
Or rather, what could it give Aven in return?
If it just kept receiving without giving back, it couldn't help but feel uneasy.
Do I really deserve Aven's help?
This was the question Gloom had been asking itself for days. Its self-doubt made it hard to accept the gift with peace of mind.
"Gloom..."
Walking through the grasslands outside the village, Gloom saw its fellow Pokémon waving at it.
Its companions were hardworking and talented. Some of them were already as strong as Gloom itself.
Despite all the help Gloom had received from Aven, its improvement wasn't much faster than the others'. This made it feel somewhat discouraged.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
While wandering, Gloom saw two of its kind engaged in battle.
A faint purple light radiated from their bodies as they both used Acid.
The two attacks collided midair and exploded into a shower of purple liquid.
Behind the two Glooms stood two villagers, giving commands as the battle resumed.
These were patrol team members from Fruitvale Village. Under their training, the two Glooms had grown quite powerful.
Upon seeing Gloom, they paused their battle and looked at it with eyes full of fighting spirit.
Gloom calmly returned the greeting with a wave and lowered its head, continuing forward, leaving behind their fiery gazes.
'Maybe giving the Leaf Stone to them would be a better choice, Gloom sighed inwardly. They're younger and have more potential than me...'
Whooosh...
Just as Gloom was deep in thought; it suddenly heard a gust of wind from above.
Then came a piercing sound from the sky.
Looking up, Gloom saw several red figures flying quickly toward Fruitvale Village.
They looked like dragonflies, with red bodies, small horns on their heads, airplane-like tail structures, and stingers at the ends.
Gloom immediately recognized them—they were Yanma, known for their frequent attacks back in the forest.
Seeing them, the other Glooms in the field showed little concern.
They were used to these flying monsters being driven off by Starly from the farm.
In recent times, many flying monsters had tried to cross the village sky, only to be chased away by Starly.
And so, it was this time as well.
At the farm, Starly, who had been training, suddenly looked up at the distant sky.
Its sensitivity to the wind allowed it to sense the intruders immediately.
Flapping its wings, Starly was about to fly up and chase the Yanma away.
But just then, Aven reached out and stopped it.
Starly looked puzzled. Why had Aven stopped it? Didn't he know enemies were approaching?
"This time, don't take action," Aven said calmly, eyes narrowing. "Let Gloom and the others handle these Yanma."
Still unsure, Starly looked at the approaching red figures again, flapped its wings, and floated slightly above the ground. But in the end, it did not fly off.
After stopping Starly, Aven turned to Froslass.
"Froslass, please follow them. If Gloom and the others are truly in danger, then you can step in."
"Mm, I'll do it!" Froslass replied cheerfully, and her figure fluttered away like a flag in the wind.
Back on the grasslands outside the village, the Glooms looked up at the approaching enemies, puzzled as to why Starly hadn't come.
Just then, one of the Yanma dived down toward a Gloom.
Though startled, Gloom quickly responded, its body glowing green as it used Absorb.
However, Yanma, known for its incredible speed, easily dodged the energy beam with a quick maneuver.
It then dived swiftly toward the startled Gloom.
Another Gloom beside it responded just as fast, releasing Sleep Powder to try and drive Yanma away.
But the gusts created by Yanma's wingbeats scattered the powder entirely—it didn't affect it at all.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
Just at the critical moment, the sound of something slicing through the air rang out.
A few glowing green leaves suddenly shot past, forcing the Yanma to abandon its attack on the Gloom in front of it.
The Yanma looped around and flew back up into the sky, its gaze locking onto the direction the attack came from.
A Gloom stood there, slightly out of breath, glowing faintly with green light.
The other Glooms on the ground also turned their heads and quickly realized it was their leader who had arrived. They immediately burst into cheers.
"Made it in time…" The Gloom leader let out a sigh of relief.
Then, its gaze turned serious as it looked at the Yanma hovering above. From the Yanma, it could feel a natural sense of suppression.
This kind of suppression came from a predator-prey relationship at the top of the food chain—it was an instinctual fear.
Whoooosh~
At that moment, several more Yanma arrived.
A total of six red dragonflies hovered in the air, exerting a strong sense of pressure on the Glooms.
"Glooom~"
Just then, a few calls rang out.
Patrol members from Fruitvale Village arrived just in time with their own Glooms.
Because these Glooms frequently went on patrol missions, they were noticeably braver, emitting a purple glow, and showed no fear.
Zzzzzz!
The Yanma in the air rapidly flapped their wings, producing a sharp, vibrating hum.
Then, they swooped down from the sky, leaving streaks of white behind them—this was the basic Tackle move.
"Gloom, use Acid!"
The patrol team issued their commands, and the Glooms beside them opened their mouths and sprayed purple liquid forward.
Seeing the incoming attack, the Yanma paused briefly in mid-air. Then, with their wings vibrating at high speed, ripples appeared in the air in front of them—shockwaves launched like blasts!
Boom!
The invisible shockwaves and the poisonous liquid collided in mid-air. The toxins exploded into a fine mist that rained down like droplets.
Ssssss—
The drops hit the grass, immediately corroding deep pits into the ground.
This proved how powerful the Acid attack was—but if it couldn't land a hit, it was useless.
Zzzzzz!
The Yanma swooped down again. With a rapid flap of their wings, another shockwave burst forth—this time it was the Sonic Boom move.
Due to the unique structure of their bodies, Yanma could easily produce shockwaves by vibrating their wings, strong enough to shatter glass. Sonic Boom was a natural move for them to master.
Caught off guard, one of the Glooms was hit directly by the Sonic Boom, sent flying by the powerful impact.
Seeing this, the other Glooms panicked. They quickly used Absorb, shooting green energy toward the Yanma, but the fast and agile Yanma easily dodged.
The Glooms were now helpless. Against aerial enemies like this, they clearly lacked combat experience, and their attack accuracy was extremely low.
In a flash, under the relentless attacks of the Yanma, a large number of Glooms were knocked out by the Sonic Booms.
The Gloom leader stood frozen, staring at the Yanma in the sky.
Watching its comrades fall one by one, it suddenly snapped out of it. What am I doing?
Coming to its senses, the leader focused on the diving Yanma, its body suddenly radiating with grass-type energy.
Leaves formed around its body as it unleashed Razor Leaf, shooting the leaves toward the Yanma.
Caught off guard by the sudden attack, the Yanma dodged quickly.
After forcing them back, the Gloom leader rushed to its fallen comrades, energy surging from its body.
It opened its arms, standing protectively in front of the others, facing the Yanma above with a warning—it would protect its kin!
(End of Chapter)